Bringing Barsoom to the Big Screen

For more than 75 years, Hollywood's been trying to bring Edgar Rice Burroughs' John Carter of Mars to the screen. Disney tinkered with it as an animated movie way back in its Snow White days. Ray Harryhausen played with the idea at one time. Even George Lucas, it's said, was intrigued by John Carter before he launched Star Wars. In just the past year or so, two terrific directors have been attached to, then detached from, a John Carter project -- Robert Rodriguez and Kerry Conran. Well, a new director was announced recently and John Carter of Mars will most definitely, it seems, arrive in theaters. It's about time.

The film's director is now Jon Favreau, who directed the soon-to-be-released sci-fi/fantasy film Zathura. (I fondly recall Favreau as the gentleman who played Foggy Nelson so brilliantly in Daredevil.) The guys at Ain'tItCool.com have posted a lengthy interview with Favreau about his intentions for the John Carter movie. Best news is that he's an ERB fan. Favreau says he will "stay true to the books, keep it intimate. Keep it emotionally true. Don't try to turn this into something it isn't." This sounds very promising, especially to a Burroughs buff like myself. At one point in the interview, Favreau says:

"I know that my 4 year old... You know, I read John Carter to him when I put him to sleep at night and he's transfixed with it, even though he doesn't completely understand it. This is something that appeals to me not just as a filmmaker, but spiritually I think there is a really wonderful story to tell here."

So who will play Dejah Thoris? There's a danger that fanboy Wally will be talking about this upcoming movie a lot in the next year or so.

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